China has approved the world’s first invasive brain-computer chip for use beyond clinical trials, a milestone that is expected to accelerate the country’s push to become a global leader in brain implants. The device, called NEO, enabled a paralyzed man in Henan province to regain a degree of motor function and perform a simple but meaningful writing task.
Sitting in the courtyard of his house in China’s Henan province last October, Dong Hui decided to try holding a pen. Six years after a car accident left him paralyzed from the neck down, he slowly wrote his name, “Thank you,” and the date. The breakthrough was made possible by a brain implant called NEO.
In March, it became the world’s first invasive brain-computer interface approved for use beyond clinical trials. The approval is expected to accelerate China’s push to become a global leader in brain implants. The development signals a significant moment for brain-computer interfaces, with China moving from research into a more advanced stage of deployment.
The broader briefing also points to a rapidly shifting technology landscape. Nvidia is launching its first Artificial Intelligence chip for personal computers, designed to power laptops from Dell, HP, Microsoft, and others, while the US is tightening export controls by stopping exports of Artificial Intelligence chips to Chinese firms abroad. Other developments include new research on chatbot manipulation, Apple’s smart glasses ambitions, and growing political activity around Artificial Intelligence regulation.
